FP Mahe 36

[DtM]

Well last weekend we raced in the Lock Crowther Memorial Regatta here in Sydney.

It was a "working sails only" regatta for those of us in the cruising division.

2 races per day with an arbitrary handicap system.

There were 8 boats in the division and on Saturday it blew a good steady 18 knots for the morning race and then 20 to 25 for the afternoon race. it truly blew and the rain made it most unpleasant.

There was just the Admiral, a friend of ours and me on board with the Admiral steering. She had never been racing before let alone steered during racing.

Results: Winner of race 1 and second in race 2 !!!!

There were three Seawind 1000 and other cruisers including an Oram 43 and Crowther 52.

The Seawinds were faster than us downwind but we were 5 degrees higher than them upwind and much faster. For example, in the second race we went around the last mark three boatlengths behind a Seawind and in a 1.5 mile beat we stuck 5 minutes into them.

Sunday saw a change in the weather (or at least the wind). Light and patchy breeze with lots of holes (still raining).

Results were a last and an unable to finish inside time limit.

Again the Seawinds were faster downwind. They are a lot lighter. Once they had a gap the different wind all over the course made it difficult to bridge the gap.

A great weekend and some interesting lessons learned.

You have to be able to barberhaul the headsail off the wind. It allows you to goosewing even when you are not DDW and gives a much better sail shape when reaching.

Even in the gusts on Saturday afternoon which exceeded 25 knots the boat felt stable and in control. We did not reef. the feeling I got was that upwind the leeward hull just bit in a little and gave 2gether heaps of height.

Photos, if we get any, to follow.

daniel and elaine

[LarryW]

Glad to see someone else is racing.

Larry

[colemj]

Originally Posted by Cotemar

The boating season up here starts in April and ends in November which is about 7 months.

Mark

Mark,

You are a sturdier man than me! April and November are for eskimos in CT. May and October push the limits for me. BTW, where did you haul the boat? Doesn't look like Noank Shipyard from the pics, but they are the only ones with a wide enough travelift.

Mark (formally from Mystic).

[Talbot]

Had a look at a Mahe today for the first time.

I really liked some features, but others left me cold. The engine hatch access from the sugar scoops makes this one a non-starter from my viewpoint. Other features might have been trade offs, but this was a deal-breaker.

[DtM]

Interesting, why?

[Talbot]

bad weather - engine failure! too high a risk to work on the engine.

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by colemj

Mark,

You are a sturdier man than me! April and November are for eskimos in CT. May and October push the limits for me. BTW, where did you haul the boat? Doesn't look like Noank Shipyard from the pics, but they are the only ones with a wide enough travelift.

Mark (formally from Mystic).

Mark - Colemj
Noank Shipyard in Mystic CT wanted $2,400 for winter storage.
We went up the CT river past Hamburg Cove to:

Chester Marina
72 Railroad Ave, Chester, CT 06412 (860) 526-1661
Lift Well opening 20' 5" Travel lift 22"
They only charge $980
And they are much better to deal with.
Mark - Catatude

[colemj]

Originally Posted by Cotemar

Mark - Colemj
Noank Shipyard in Mystic CT wanted $2,400 for winter storage.
We went up the CT river past Hamburg Cove to:

Chester Marina
72 Railroad Ave, Chester, CT 06412 (860) 526-1661
Lift Well opening 20' 5" Travel lift 22"
They only charge $980
And they are much better to deal with.
Mark - Catatude

Did they have to grease you up to get you in there ?

Noank Shipyard can be an awful place to deal with. The people are nice, but will pick your pocket any chance they get - you have to watch them like hawks for overcharges.

Mark

[DtM]

Hi All,

If anyone is online and on/near their boat can you tell me the size of the wire for the shrouds.

I would be very grateful.

daniel

[MKB53]

Now that I am heading home I feel the need to get engaged in the real world again.

I thought I would put up a couple of photos from the many hundreds we took so far in 10 weeks of cruising. Just because pics are nice to look at and all this talk of laying up boats for winter needs a counter balance.

Reflexion at Peppers Resort Long Island when we treated ourselves to a 5 star dinner and the best view from a loo in the world. It took my wife some patience and luck to get that shot!

[DtM]

Thanks Martin.

[Jef & Marin, Netherlands]

Talbot, I don't understand you. There are 2 engines. When one breaks down you use the other one to get into a harbour and fix it there.
Only risk of both engines breaking down could be if your fuel was polluted with water or bacteria, but the two engines have completely different fuel lines and filters.
Furthermore I think that at least 90 % of engine failures is due to insufficient maintenance.

In 44 knots of wind we have had breakers on the sugar scoops. I found some drops of seawater on the engines afterwards, to prevent future rust I have cleaned the engines.
Having the engine access outside keep the heat and the smell out.
Rgds,
Jef

[Talbot]

As a Cat owner for over 21 years, I do recognise the redundancy issue. I also recognise the advantage of the engine heat noise and smell kept out of the accomodation. Access such as on the Privilege 39 is acceptable, access such as on the Mahe is NOT FOR ME.

I can recognise that it is acceptable for other people, after all that is why there are different designs of boat available.

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by Talbot

As a Cat owner for over 21 years, I do recognise the redundancy issue. I also recognise the advantage of the engine heat noise and smell kept out of the accomodation. Access such as on the Privilege 39 is acceptable, access such as on the Mahe is NOT FOR ME.

I can recognise that it is acceptable for other people, after all that is why there are different designs of boat available.

Besides, if it is inside one can work on the engine with the air conditioner running.

[Scott730]

And winning! Good for you Daniel.